Workplace
Furloughs vs. firings
More companies are using furloughs to trim costs without permanently cutting their workforce, said Jeff Harrington in the St. Petersburg, Fla., Times. This strategy, long popular in “government and manufacturing circles,” has been embraced by employers across the board during the current downturn. “Furloughs come in different shapes and sizes, though they’re tethered to the same basic assumption: By compelling a worker to take unpaid time off one day a week, or several weeks a year, it spares a layoff for now.”
Furloughed workers should ask to take unpaid days in weeklong stints, said Dana Mattioli in The Wall Street Journal. Among other reasons, if off-days are grouped together, it may be possible to qualify for unemployment benefits. To take a whole week at once, rather than “nip a day here or there,” will also help to trim expenses for everything from child care to commuting. And smart workers shouldn’t treat these unpaid days like vacation. Instead, they should brush up their résumés, learn new skills, and network—in other words, start preparing for the possibility that this furlough could turn into a full-blown layoff.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
'Make legal immigration a more plausible option'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
LA-to-Las Vegas high-speed rail line breaks ground
Speed Read The railway will be ready as soon as 2028
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Israel's military intelligence chief resigns
Speed Read Maj. Gen. Aharon Haliva is the first leader to quit for failing to prevent the Hamas attack in October
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published